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SINGAPORE – The Republic is poised to be a hub for the movement of Covid-19 vaccines to the region, with shipments from Europe expected to pass through Singapore to Southeast Asia and the Southwest Pacific when broader regulatory approval is obtained. .
Ho Yuen Sang, director of aviation industry at the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), said Singapore can play a distribution role in areas where infrastructure to handle large volumes of vaccines may be limited.
“In such areas, they may prefer to have their vaccines delivered more frequently in smaller volumes so as not to overwhelm their local cold chain management capacity,” explained Mr. Ho.
Pfizer’s vaccine should be kept at minus 70 degrees C, and Moderna’s should be stored at minus 20 degrees C.
Ho said Singapore’s air connectivity, as well as its ability to store shipments at low temperatures, puts it in a good position to temporarily store vaccines.
He spoke at a press conference on Tuesday (December 8) by the Changi Ready Task Force to explain Singapore’s willingness to handle air cargo for the Covid-19 vaccine.
The task force, co-chaired by CAAS and Changi Airport Group (CAG), is comprised of 18 members, including Singapore Airlines (SIA), ground handling personnel, logistics partners and authorities.
On Singapore’s ability to maintain the cold chain, CAG Air Center Development Managing Director Lim Ching Kiat said: “We have put a lot of emphasis on strengthening Changi’s competitive advantage in terms of pharmaceutical freight shipping.
“So Changi Airport has become, especially in recent years, the key preferred hub for pharmaceutical shipments.”
A dozen companies in the Changi air hub have received international certification for handling pharmaceuticals, and ground operators Sats and dnata have also invested in capabilities to maintain an uninterrupted cold chain.
The task force said that SIA also operates several weekly flights to key European pharmaceutical hubs, such as Amsterdam, Brussels and Frankfurt, and has an extensive network in Southeast Asia and the Southwest Pacific, including Australia and New Zealand.
The first batch of Pfizer’s vaccine is being manufactured in the Belgian city of Puurs and will be shipped from Brussels.
Major logistics players such as DHL, FedEx and UPS also have regional hubs in Singapore with strong network connectivity from Changi airport, the working group noted.
Mr. Lim said, “Changi Airport, together with the authorities, will try to engage some of the key shippers to sell the strengths of the Changi Air Hub as a whole, how we have experience in handling pharmaceuticals, and to do this exercise safely. “
The move to position Singapore as a hub for distributing vaccine cargo to the region comes amid growth in cargo handling.
CAG said that cargo flights at Changi Airport have tripled since last year to 950 weekly flights as of December 1 with around 80 cities connected via these cargo flights.
On the importance of Changi working to be a hub for the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, Lim said it represents a humanitarian effort and helps bring the cargo business to the airport.
He added: “The widespread distribution of vaccines is a very key part of the recovery of passenger travel, so we also have a great interest in making sure that … the (distribution) of the vaccine is done in the most efficient and fast as possible. “
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